The Kingdom
by IcePrinceRay
Summary: How will you survive in the land of a monarchy which doesn't gives a single s*** to what happens to it's people? Ask this to Gray and his companions who strive to live in this so-called monarchy.
1. Prologue

**Hi'ya guys! I am here...with yet another fic! Don't worry I am paying attention on my other fics too.**

**Disclaimer: I am not someone by the name of Hiro Mashima.**

The Kingdom

Prologue

He ran. He ran and never looked back. His wounded legs blazing in pain but he can't afford to be caught yet again. His heart thumped wildly against his bruised chest. A rush of adrenaline coursed through his whole being. He heard the horrendous taps of footsteps rushing after him while yelling profanities. The crack of the whip too clear for his liking as it threatened to once again leave its mark on his body. He clutched the little bag of flour to his chest, his only life line. He spotted the familiar pink hair rushing through the streets like him.

"Natsu!" he called out as the pinkette came side by side with him.

"Hey Gray, quite a good catch" Natsu commented while looking at the bag in his comrades hands. He himself was carrying a bunch of apples he had stolen from the cargo ship. He looked behind to see the pursuers were already dissolved in the public. Both of them ran and ran till they reached an abandoned alley. Both of them slowed down and tried to catch their breath.

"You got it pretty bad today" Gray said as he noticed the trail of blood running down the pinkette's already bruised body.

"Oh, yeah. Got nearly caught and had to beat up one or two before I was finally able to evade them." Natsu said as both of them entered an abandoned building in the deep darkness of the alley. "Oi, old man where are ya?" Natsu yelled through the darkness when they heard clack of boots and a brown haired man came out.

"Hey Gildarts" Gray said as Gildarts just smiled at both of them.

"Guess what kiddos, I got a big catch today. It will be able to keep all of us alive till the end of the week!" Gildarts announced as the three of them headed inside to see the Strauss siblings sitting on the table while arranging the stuff Gildarts was able to steal.

"Woah! Indeed it was a big catch Old man!" Natsu exclaimed as he saw how much food and other things were strewn across the place. He placed his bag of apples on the table while eyeing the stuff. Gray went inside and placed the bag of flour he had stole in the kitchen before heading to the room just beside the kitchen. That room was also dark like the others but was more hygienic and furnitured. Gray went and sat down on the chair near the bed. On the said bed a silver head was lying unconscious. A machine was beeping down on his side which allowed him to breath and controlled his heart beat. Gray just stared at his older brother.

"Lyon" he started. "When are you gonna wake up dude? It is already over 2 years since then and yet you- you are still like that...just because of me. If only you wouldn't have saved me that day then maybe our positions would've been reversed. Maybe you would'he been living your life freely and happily." Gray just sat there, half expecting Lyon to wake up and beat the crap outta him.

"Gray! Dinner time." Mira's voice came. Gray just looked one last time at his bro before going out.

TBC

**Another one of my fics...I am an useless idiot, I know. Anyways review and tell me if it has the potential to be continued.**

**And who is super excited for the next chappie of Fairy Tail?! I am!**

**Gosh Gray and Natsu are gonna fight TOGETHER! The awesomest fight! Now I just can't wait!**

**Ja!**


	2. Another One

**Wow1 New chappie already! I am kinda proud of myself now. Now on with the chappie!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT**

The Kingdom

Chapter 1

Another One

Gray and Natsu were currently roaming in the nearby forests, collecting fire wood for Mira to make fire. Yeah Natsu is the fire dragon slayer but it wasn't wise to use magic and have the royal army at their throats. They already had enough trouble on their plates. Last time when Natsu had used his magic, the army had sensed it and pursued him till no end. They were likely still searching.

"Hey ice princess, found any?" Natsu asked mentioning the wood they were here for. It was tough searching for them as usually the royals have the forest basically stripped off all its fire wood so people will have to buy them. They even prohibited the entry of common people inside the forest so they willn't have any other choice than to work in the fields under the supervision of the army to earn a livelyhood. Still people like Gray and co. ignored it and barged into the forests on a daily basis. They were able to find some little amount of wood on daily basis but today, there wasn't a single useful twig in sight. The only ones were wet and worse off because of the downpour yesterday night.

"Nope. You?" Natsu just shook his head in response. Both the boys ventured further inside.

After walking for another half an hour, Natsu heard a slight rustle of bushes. He immediately went on his top guard. The animals in this forest were beyond nasty.

"Gray" he warned as the ice mage nodded his head. Both of them stood back to back, ready to attack whatever creature that had decided to target them. Suddenly a lygle launched itself on both the boys. Both of them rolled on opposite sides as the lygle landed where both of them were previously standing. 

"God he is one big kitty" Natsu commented before sprinting away with Gray tailing behind him. The lygles are a type of animals that are known for tearing away their food before eating it...even if the said food is still alive. They are the merciless mutations the king had left to roam in the forests as a kind of punishers. They are here to eat and torture the law breakers...like Natsu and Gray. They are said to be the so called guards of the forests. The lygle just roared and pursued his prey.

"He is following us!" Gray said, running foot to foot with his pink headed companion. The lygle pounced on the two, aiming for the raven's head when suddenly the said raven head was pushed down the hill, evading the lygle. Gray looked to see that a strawberry blonde guy had both him and Natsu in his grasp.

"Who are you?" Natsu asked after both Gray and he had thanked their life saver. The blonde just looked around before dragging both of them with him.

"I am Loki Celeste. By the way, what were you two doing while playing around with a creature like that!?" Loki yelled at both the guys who just stared at him perplexed.

"Hey hey hey calm down will ya. And fyi we were not, I repeat we were NOT playing with that big cat." Natsu replied back only to earn a sigh from this Loki guy.

"So, you live here?" Gray asked following Loki into a cave, Natsu right behind him. The cave looked like a part of some ruins with designs that were embedded in the walls.

"Yeah, well this is all I have" Loki answered. Like Natsu and Gray, he also had some vivid scratches and wounds. His clothes were kind of identical to Natsu's, well Gray's were likely to be already strewn away somewhere, a simple ragged shirt with dusty baggy pants and worn out high tops.

"What if the army found you?" Natsu asked, taking a seat on the grass carpeted floor.

"Well it hasn't happened until now, so I don't have any idea. By the way, where are your clothes?" Loki said, mentioning to Gray's bare chest. Gray just shrugged his shoulders, used to this line. Suddenly a horde of footsteps was heard outside with numerous shouts.

"Find those creeps! They are seriously a pain in the ass!" a voice said out loud. The three boys looked at each other before peeking outside the cave to see that whole forest was being covered by the empire's army.

"It doesn't looks good" Loki mumbled when he felt a tug on the sleeve of his shirt. He turned his head to see Gray ushering him to be quiet and follow while Natsu lead the way while sniffing continuously. The atmosphere was undeniably tense, the only sound was the voice of their feet stepping on the green grass and their breaths.

"Found it!" Natsu whisper-yelled. He ran out, Gray and Loki following him only for the three of them to fall down from the cliff and into the ocean. The water wasn't raging so it was easy swimming. The three swam past the forest and in 15 minutes or so they were already sneaking around in the streets of the city.

"Where are we heading?" Loki asked when they snuck into an empty alley and slid down on the ground. Natsu just grinned before answering, "To our home" he said while Gray just nodded his head before resting his body against the wall. After the surroundings were pretty much normal, the three boys got up and sneakily headed to their home. Finally spotting the familiar shabby area, Gray started to pick up speed only to be hauled back by Natsu.

"Quick! Hide behind" he ushered both his companions and himself into the shadows of a nearby building.

"What happened?" Gray asked but got no response from the pink headed mage. Suddenly the door of their home was thrown open and the soldiers of the royal army came out. At seeing this both Gray and Natsu were shocked while Loki was just confused. After a wait of painfully long 10 minutes, the coast was clear. Natsu was the first to come out of their hiding followed by Gray and Loki and into their home. Before Gray even got to enter, he rammed into Natsu's back who was standing as rigid as a rock.

"Hey what happened Fire bird?" he asked but received no answer. Loki was standing beside him. Suddenly Natsu's knees buckled under his body and he fell on the ground. Before his whole body made contact with the ground, loki and Gray swiftly caught him. Gray then finally got the view of inside. Once he saw it, he wished he never had. The insides were covered in blood and debris.

"No…no…"Natsu mumbled while steam seemed to rise from his body. Gray noticed this and immediately punched him unconscious. It wasn't wise to let Natsu's sudden magic outburst be made a bait for the army to spot them and then kill them.

"What the hell happened here?" loki said out loud and stepped inside. He suddenly spotted a mop of white hair. He rushed their only to find two girls lying on the floor while blood seeped from various parts of their bodies. A brutish guy was lying a few feet away from them, also with white hair. He went on further inside to see a room, probably kitchen, trampled hazardously. Glass was everywhere and pieces of china were strewn here and there. He heard hurried footsteps behind him and turned to see Gray run into the room just beside the said kitchen. He poked his head inside to see Gray's distraught expression.

"Where is he?! WHERE!? LYON!" he yelled, as if his brother would hear him and come back but alas it wasn't possible since Lyon was comatose since like last 2 years. The bed was empty and the room was a complete mess, just like the rest of the house.

"Gray? Are you in there?" Gray turned his head to see Gildarts with a still limp form of Lyon in his arms.

"Gildarts!" Gray immediately went towards the brown haired man. He was just so happy to see that Lyon was alive…even if not awake but he was there.

"Sorry for all that, I just wasn't on time. Mira, Lisanna and Elfman, yes they are alive but if only…I would've came earlier…" Gildarts mumbled away apologize when suddenly his eyes caught sight of an unfamiliar strawberry blonde. Loki noticed the gaze on him and turned to see that this Gildarts person was looking at him. He went towards the elder man and extended his arm for a friendly shake.

"I am Loki Celeste" he introduced himself as both he and Gildarts shook hands. Natsu, who was awake now, came towards the lot while rubbing his stomach where Gray had punched him.

"Ice princess, that was one punch you threw. Gildarts, how did all this happen?" he asked, looking expectantly at Gildarts who just sighed and started to tell the tale.

TBC

**How was it? Boring? Lovely? Fab? Please review!**


	3. Ambush

**The Kingdom**

**Chapter 2**

**The Ambush**

"Mira nee, Gildarts San said that he will be back by evening." Lisanna informed Mira while helping her clean the cabinets in their make shift kitchen.

"Oh okay, Lisanna can you help me changing Lyon's bed's sheets after we are done here?" Mira asked only to receive nod.

"Yes of course. Wait a sec, I will just call Elf-nii to shift Lyon on the couch for time being." Lisanna said while washing her hands in the rusting basin. She dried her hands and headed out and towards the backyard when suddenly she heard loud shouting. She peeked through a crack in the door only to see that Elfman was surrounded by the royal guards. She clamped her hand on her mouth to suppress her scream for help and ran towards Lyon's room. She stopped in front of the kitchen and indicated for Mira to follow her silently. Without inquiring, Mira followed her little sister inside Lyon's room and lightly closed the door.

"What happened Lisanna? Why are you looking so troubled?!" she asked worriedly. Lisanna looked at her with tear filled eyes before rushing off to Lyon's side and started to unplug the machine from his body while explaining what she has just seen.

"The guards are here. They have already surrounded Elf-nii." Mira gasped loudly before helping Lisanna support Lyon off the bed. Both of them dragged him outside through the door in the side and laid him near the door while covering him with dirty sheets.

"Sorry Lyon but to protect you this is necessary." Mira said before she and Lisanna went inside and closed the door before placing the shabby wallpaper back on it, disguising it as a part of the wall. Just as both of them turned around, the door was banged open and in came several royal guards.

"Surrender or do you wanna be beaten like that guy out there?" one of them said. Mira stepped in front of Lisanna and called forth her magic, turning only her arms into that of a demon's.

"You willn't dare to hurt Lisanna." And the fight began.

Gildarts was going back home to retrieve a bag when he had sensed Mira's magic being activated. He sprinted towards the alley when suddenly his eyes fell on a hand protruding out from some dirty sheets outside their home. He made his way towards the bundle and uncovered it only to find Lyon. He immediately crouched down to the young adult's side and checked for his pulse. He sighed in relief when he felt the steady beat of heart. Hauling the limp figure on his shoulder, he continued towards the main entrance. The commotion was already over as he had seen the royal guards go out of the cabin before. He went inside and saw the whole ruckus. His attention was diverted by a shout of his name. He turned his head to find Gray was the one who had called him.

~FB End~

Gray was sitting at Lyon's bedside while Gildarts, Natsu and Loki were trying to repair the broken door. He had became kind of unresponsive since the short disappearance of the silverette.

"Is he okay?" Loki asked mentioning Gray. The raven head was just sitting while clutching Lyon's hand in his. He had gotten quite a big scare this time. He felt as if Lyon will disappear once again if he left his side.

"Long story short, Gray is overly protective of his big bro." Natsu said after placing the tools in their designated places before continuing, "Don't disturb him or he will become all panicky and grumpy." he said, remembering the last time Lisanna had accidentally rammed into Gray while he was sitting there. It was when they were 15 and Lisanna wanted to play with him and Gray. But that morning only Lyon had been declared comatose. Gray was just sitting there, sniffing and sobbing silently while holding onto his big bro's hand. Gildarts, Mira and Elfman were out for some businesses which had left only him, Lisanna and the devastated Gray at home with an unresponsive Lyon.

"Natsu, let's make Gray happy" Lisanna had proposed while he and her were peeking through the slightly ajar door and to the crying 15 year old. He had nodded at that time, not looking at the possible consequences as his frival was his first priority now.

"So you got any plans" he had asked. He still remembered how he and Lisanna were acting to be all happy and playful. Their plan was to laugh and have fun before going and inviting the depressed teen to hangout with them. But just as soon as he and Lisanna had went to ask Gray, they were thrown out by the said raven. Mira had talked to Gray after this incident and the answer that came out was, " I thought...that if...if I will leave Lyo nii alone then he will disappear forever."

After that, nobody had ever bothered Gray when he was having his silent brother to brother talk with Lyon.

Natsu just sighed at that memory. Even after 2 years, nothing much has changed except for maybe Loki's arrival. His view diverted towards the three figures lying on three makeshift beds by the fireplace. An unconscious growl escaped his throat as he eyed the bandaged figures.

'I am gonna make that crazy lunatic pay.' He thought to himself as some sparks, involuntarily, flew from his fists.

~King's castle~

Some people were being dragged through a wide open mahgony door and into a velvet carpeted room. In the room sat many people. Some were the royals while others were the king's courtiers. In the far end of the room, a posh chair was placed on top of a slightly raised platform. On that chair, sat a man with a crown on his head. He had a frown etched on his face as he eyed the teenage guys being dragged inside by his soldiers. The soldiers made their captives stand in a queue in front of the black haired man. One of the soldiers stepped forward and kneeled down on his knee while his right hand was placed on his left pectoral.

"My king, I present you the boys we caught that were identical to the instructions you have given us. Please have a look at them." with this the other soldiers uncovered the faces of the 14 boys. Every guy had one thing in common, that was black or blue hair and cobalt eyes. The king took a look at them. After looking at them, a sneer escaped his lips. The glass of champagne in his hand flew and landed right on the abdomen of the last captive guy in the line. The poor guy yelped slightly as a mixture of the drink and blood oozed out of the cloth covering his torso.

"I told you to bring the right guys but you buffoon! Can't you even do a single thing right!? Go away from my view! I don't want to see your rotten visage once again! GO!" the king barked. The soldier, who was kneeling, got up and went outside. The king looked around the room until his eyes fell on his own son.

"Laxus" the blonde standing on his right side came and stood where the soldier previously was. "From now on, you are not only the prince and next heir but till you get crowned, you are also the head guard of the empire!" Laxus kneeled on his knee with his sword in his hand. The whole courtroom bursted into cheers as Laxus stood up and raised his sword up for all to see.

"So Laxus, your first mission as the royal head guard is to find the princes of the fire and the ice kingdom" Ivan said as he and Laxus entered his bedroom to keep the matter as confidential as possible.

"Okay but dad, can I ask the reason why?" the blonde asked. Ivan contemplated whether to tell him or not and decided in favor of it.

"I don't find any harm in it so why not." Ivan said while motioning for Laxus to come and sit in front of him on one of the loveseats.

TBC

**Soooooo, how was this? Well I don't know from where but I just had this urge to make Ivan the evil king...so I did it. Please review and tell if there is any mistake.**

**Added AN: Thank you so much PervyPopsiclePrincess to point that out! i never knew it was such a haphazard...Thank you so damn much! Wish you will like this better than that one...which is kinda obvious...Thanks once again!**


	4. Princes

**The Kingdom**

**Chapter 3**

**Princes**

~Castle of Isvan~

A raven haired man roamed around the castle while cradling an infant to his chest. A big smile was prominent on his face as he eyed the little life he and his wife have created. The 2 month old infant was currently sleeping deeply, his hand gripping at his father's silk shirt in his small fist. The infants short raven hair were in a mess while he sucked numbly on the cloth of his father's cape. The king sighed before trying to free his cape from his son's mouth.

"Mika, Gray is at it again." he said with a defeated sigh. A black haired woman with ocean blue eyes emerged from the adjacent room. Her blue gown swished gently behind her.

"What happened Silver?" Mika asked when she noticed her husband fumbling around with the dark blue garment.

"Help me" Silver pleaded. Mika smiled lightly before going towards her husband and son. She held Gray in her arms, allowing Silver to free himself. Suddenly voice of crying filled the whole castle.

"Hey little guy" Silver said only to be kicked in the chest by one of Gray's little feet. Mika cooed him back to sleep while bouncing him lightly. Soon Gray's breathing evened out and he was yet again in his dream land.

"Aww don't be so sad Silver. It was just an accident." Mika said while looking at her husband's comically sad expression.

"But Mikaaaaa, Gray chan kicked me, his dad. He hates me!" and soon the comical waterworks followed.

"Don't be such a baby Silver. You are a dad now and don't forget you are a king too, so please mature up...even if a little bit." Mika sighed eyeing her husband who was sniffling.

"You also hate me!" and with this the immaturish king sprinted away while crying comically, barely avoiding the maids and butlers who were doing their usual chores.

"Please don't be childish when you grow up Gray. One Silver is enough to deal with." Mika said to the little cocoonised baby in her arms. Sighing, she headed to Gray's bedroom to lay him down before going to find Silver.

~Kingdom of Fire~

Loud voices of crying were heard throughout the castle. A red haired man was sitting on the floor, one finger in each of his ears. An infant was bawling loudly while flailing his limbs every which way.

"Aah shut up brat!" king Igneel groaned while standing up and facing his son. He was just trying to give him a hug when the little brat had to get up and start crying.

"Oi oi Natsu, I am your dad for Mavis's sake. Please stop crying." Just as the word 'dad' had left Igneel's mouth, the crying stopped. He turned to see the infant looking at him, his chubby cheeks red and damp. Suddenly the infant was making happy gurgling voices while kicking his legs lightly. He patted his fist at his side. Igneel went towards him, a genuine smile on his face. He carried his little angel in his arms and held him close to his chest.

"Even I can't resist your charm my boy" he said to the infant who just snuggled closer to him. He cradled him and the sound of beating of his heart lulled the little pink haired guy to sleep. Lying him on the soft bed, Igneel pecked his forehead before heading off to complete his daily duties.

~Castle of Isvan~

All hell had broken loose in the once so happy kingdom. Every citizen was crying in anguish, searching haphazardly. Their one and only prince had been lost.

"Where is he?! Gray!? GRAY!?" Silver's saddened and worry filled voice rang out throughout the castle. He hastily rubbed his tear stained cheeks once again only for new ones to replace. His own little baby was lost, taken from their own home. He thought back to how his wife had reacted. Poor soul was broken from inside out. The new mom was still crying while her maids were trying to comfort her as much as they were able to while controlling their own sobs. All the soldiers were strewn across the kingdom.

"Where are you my son? Please! Please I beg you! Please come back….please! I will die without you Gray! Please come back!" Silver slid down to the floor on his knees. Large drops of salty water fell from his eyes. He looked up to see the same bed his son was sleeping on last time Mika had tucked him in. He slowly got up and sat down on the king sized bed. He now felt as if his heart had been ripped out, burned, stabbed and then shoved down his throat. All the memories he had made with his little baby were returning full blast. The first time he had held Gray in his arms, the time when he and Mika had named their little angel, his smiling face, the first time Silver had tried to change his diaper at which he had failed embarrassingly, all the times when Gray will sit at the king's throne with his dad, every day when Gray will wake up beside him or Mika. There were so many to even count. But now, their little light of joy was gone, no trace left. Suddenly a white envelope beside Gray's pillow caught Silver's eye. He picked it up while wiping his tears. Slowly opening the letter, raw fury burst out through his body.

~Kingdom of Fire~

"NATSU!" Igneel's voice rang out. The situation was same as what was happening in Isvan. They had also lost their little prince. Their pillar of support. It was devastating how the ever so powerful and strong king Igneel had broke down in sobs when he had discovered his son's bed empty, no trace anywhere in the whole kingdom. Nothing was able to lessen the king's misery, his anguish so deep that it was unimaginable. It was the pain of losing a piece of their own body, their own being. Igneel felt incomplete. First his dearest wife and now his only life line, his son Natsu, was also gone. This was enough to break him down.

"NATSU! WHY!? WHERE ARE YOU MY SON!? RETURN TO YOUR DAD! PLEASE! I AM EMPTY WITHOUT YOU MY ANGEL! PLEASE COME BACK!" he cried to the heavens. His head resting on his son's bed. This pain was just too much. He hadn't experienced anything like this even when he was on the brink of death in a war way back when he was just a prince. Now he knew the pain of a father who had lost his son, and it was unbearable. His son was and is his world. Nothing can outmatch him, nothing. All the soldiers and servants were searching, they too were broken. Their king was suffering so much. They had never seen him like this, never.

Igneel raised his head up slightly when he had heard a small meek voice from his side. He turned to see one of the maids.

"King *sob* I just found this under Natsu sama's *sob* bed" and with this her series of cries sprung out. Igneel nodded and excused her after taking the letter from her hands. He opened it. And all hell broke loose.

~Castle of Isvan~

"How dare that Igneel!? He took away my son! Prepare the army, a war is going to happen!" Silver yelled out orders. The atmosphere was tense and full of revenge. They were going to bring their prince back.

~Kingdom of Fire~

"Prepare the troops! We are going to make Silver know his place! We will bring our Natsu BACK!" Igneel's voice rang out followed by several cheers.

~Current time, Ivan and Laxus~

The after effects of the war are still going on as a cold war. With the two of the most powerful kingdoms hell bent on eradicating each other, out kingdom will outshine them soon." Ivan finished.

"So you mean, you kidnapped the princes?" Laxus asked, maintaining a neutral expression.

"Yes, but when those brats turned 4, they ran away. I am still searching for them. That is where you come in. You have to search those brats for me and bring them here. Gray from Isvan is 18, Blue eyes, Black or Raven hair, Alabaster skin, a cross necklace. Natsu from Fire is also 18, Tanned skin, Olive eyes, pink hair, a scaly scarf around his neck." With this, Laxus rose and went outside. Ivan just smirked.

TBC

**How was it guys? Sorry for the last chapter….i truly don't know from where that coding appeared but now it is alright **** Please review!**


	5. Captured

**New chappie! Think of it as a little present to you all for 2015! I was going to publish it on 31****st**** December but the damn network was so busy that I didn't got the access to my account …damn. Anyways, here it is now! Have a good time!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT**

The Kingdom

Chapter 4

Captured

Laxus roamed in the streets of the kingdom with his battalion of soldiers in tow. They were roaming around in search of the princes since last 2 days but still there wasn't even a speck of their hide or hair.

"Come back here you insolent son of a-! Somebody catch him!" the voice of a man yelling was heard not so far from where Laxus was with his men. Laxus looked in the direction from where he heard the yell to spot two bruised and beaten teens running away from three or four of the shopkeepers. Both the teens had a crate of fruits each in their hands and were still running faster than their empty handed pursuers.

Gray and Loki were wandering in the streets of the town, looking for an opportunity. Gray looked around when suddenly he felt a tug on the sleeve of his shirt. He turned to see that Loki was the one tugging. Loki pointed towards a wagon which had brought the crates filled with fruits to be delivered. Gray nodded and both of them sneakily went in front of the wagon. Suddenly they sprinted and snatched away two crates from the lot while the shopkeeper stood there, gawking at them before the situation of what had just transpired dawned on him. Both the teens were too fixated in maintaining their speed that they never heard the yelling behind them.

Gray ran as fast as his bruised legs were able to take him. He looked at his side to see Loki matching his pace effortlessly. Suddenly he felt himself collide with someone. The sudden impact sent him falling on his butt. He winced as his sprained ankle throbbed with raw pain. He was so immersed in trying to stand up while trying to lessen the strain on his ankle that he missed to spot a brunette man in the uniform of the royal army who was standing in front of him.

Loki stopped mid-track when he noticed that Gray wasn't running with him. He turned to see the raven head colliding with a blonde headed man. Just as Gray fell down, a brown haired man came in front of him. A whip was in the brown haired man's hand.

CRACK!

Gray was already able to feel the weldge form where the whip had just connected with his barely covered torso. It was a miracle that he hadn't thrown away the ragged over sized jacket because of his stripping habit. Gray looked up only in time to see the bloody whip make contact with Loki's back while he protected him with his body. As if by the rush of adrenaline, he stood up on his throbbing ankle and pulled Loki away from the brown haired whipper.

"Stop it Reild."an authoritative voice said. The speaker was a blonde haired guy with a scar in the shape of a lightning bolt on his face. The whipper bowed and went to stand with the rest of the army.

Laxus watched the two boys with a slight interest visible in his eyes.

"What were you two brats doing by stealing that man's stuff!? Don't you dare disrupt the peace of the kingdom by doing these kinds of misdeeds or you will suffer!" He yelled at the two teens on the ground. Gray let the bleeding Loki rest on the ground as he stood up to face the chief of the army.

"Trying to fill our stomachs since you freaking royals have no care whatsoever for the starving people who are dying in this so-called peaceful kingdom of yours." Gray said back. Laxus observed the boy's looks. The ebony hair, dark blue eyes, pale skin which was bloodied and lastly the sword necklace that hung from his neck. He smirked to himself before grabbing a fistful of the boy's ebony hair. Gray yelped slightly at the pain but refused to show any other sign of weakness.

"Ohh, so you are _the Gray Fullbuster_we have been searching for so long."Laxus growled with a mocking tone. Gray just glared at him but confusion was evident on his face.

"Go back to your work everyone! Prince Laxus has the situation under his command!" one of the armymen said after Laxus gave him the signal. The accumulated crowd dispersed shortly after the declaration.

"Send the message to father that we have captured the Isvan brat"Laxus said and two of the soldiers sprinted away in the direction of the castle. Laxus smirked at the teen in his grasp. Tugging tightly at the ebony tresses, Laxus dragged the teen with him.

"Hey leave me alone you mother freaker!" Gray yelled but the grip on his skull only became tighter and painful.

"Gray!" Loki called out but the blonde man just dragged his friend away. Not having any other choice, Loki stood up and ran in the direction of their home. He ignored the jolts of pain travelling his body because his main priority was to save Gray. Diving into the familiar alley, he rammed straight into the dirty building which was their home.

"Hey Lo-!What happened?!"Gildarts asked as he took in the bloodied sight of their new family member. He immediately went and carried the injured teen over to the battered couch and laid him with his stomach down. By this time Mira was already prepared with the bandages and the medicine. His whole back was like a gooey mess as if the skin and blood has only been thrown haphazardly. She was able to feel the heat wafting off his back even from where she was sitting on the small coffee table.

"Looks pretty nasty"Gildarts said with a pained grimace on his face. Seeing such wounds on ones own body was a different thing and seeing such wounds on someone else's body was another thing.

"Gray..." Loki croaked out painfully. Mira was cleaning the blood and dirt with ice cold water which somewhat numbed the pain and a relieved sigh escaped his lips.

"Gray?! Where is he Loki? Wasn't he with you?"Gildarts asked.

"He was taken...by those royals...and I was just as weak as ever...and left him to be taken..."

By now the strawberry blonde was slipping in and out of consciousness.

"They-!? They took him!?" Mira asked, horror stricken. They had already lost Gildart's daughter, Cana at the hand of those royals. It was at the time when Cana had went alone to bring some food as the four guys that is Gray, Natsu, Lyon and Elfman had all came down with flu. Lisanna and Mira herself were indulged in taking care of them while Gildarts was out in the forest, trying to bring the medicinal herbs to treat the four of them. There was a shortage of vegetables to make the soup so the 12 year old pre-teen had went to fish some veggies from the market. It was over 3 hours that Cana had gone and still there had been no sign of her returning. After another hour, the sun had set.

Mira still vividly remembered how Gildarts had entered the house that day with an already dead and bloodied Cana in his arms. He had been crying buckets while he had hugged his dead daughter's bloody body close to his chest. Afterwards they had gotten to know that she was caught by the royal army and taken to the was brutally tortured to death in those 4 hours. Gildarts had said that he had found her in the river. Apparently the royals had thrown her corpse in the river for it to be washed away with the current.

Now she and Gildarts both feared of what those wretched creeps might be doing to Gray.

"No. I will not let them do what they did to Cana to Gray. I will not let him die."

At this same moment Natsu entered with Lisanna and Elfman in tow. They had already heard what the two were talking about.

"What do you mean by Gray dying?" Natsu growled out. He cared for the raven head as much as the raven head cared for him. Both of them had grown up side by side since their infancy. Even if the memories were vague, he only remembered Gray from his baby years.

"Natsu" Gildarts said, facing the trio who had just entered. "Gray was taken by the royals" he completed. In the split second in which these words had only tumbled out of Gildarts' mouth, Natsu was already sprinting out of the dirty building. Expecting this, Gildarts pursued the pinkette but lost him in the ever so dense crowd.

"Damn" he cursed before venturing down the crowded paths.

Natsu was running towards the castle, not caring for his own safety. Soon the big looming castle was in his sight and this only fired his spirits. He felt his body's temperature increase with every step he took. His insides felt as if he was on fire but this feeling was intoxicating for him. This warmth erased any other sense of pain from his mind and body which helped him focus more. Soon his body was releasing sparks which were soon converted into flames that covered his whole body.

Gildarts sensed the sudden outburst of magic coming from his left. He turned on his heel and dashed in that direction. "That damned brat!" he yelled while running.

Natsu roared in anger as he continued to flung away every soldier that dared to come his way. Suddenly a blonde haired young adult came his way with more of those soldiers in tow.

"WHERE IS GRAY!?" Natsu yelled as he charged at them with his fist aflame. Laxus easily dodged the attacking teen and punched him away.

"You can use magic hmm, impressive but you are not trained so no chance!"

With one final kick to the pinkette's gut, Laxus dragged him to where Ivan was. Throwing open the door with one hand while dragging Natsu with other, Laxus came and stood in front of his father's throne.

"Here is the other brat, dad" Laxus said while throwing Natsu in front of his father. Ivan grinned devilishly while looking at the prince of Fire lying in front of him.

"Laxus my son, you have certainly proved yourself. You have proved me loud and clear that you are worth this throne!" Ivan said while laughing. Laxus just smirked while doing a little bow.

"G-gray…w-w-where is h-he!?" Natsu croaked out only to receive a smirk in answer.

"Where you will be going now"

With this said, two soldiers came and dragged the pinkette away and out of the throne room. They dragged him deep into the dungeons till they reached the musky and dark floor where the other prince was kept as a 's half lidded eyes were already dull but when he saw the ebony haired boy propped against the wall of the cell he was just thrown into, his senses cleared somewhat.

"Gray!" He said while half running half falling towards the limp figure. He heard the cell's door being locked shut but he didn't give a single care. His priority was to rouse the limp figure of his friend and then escape from this hell hole. But still the question of why they have been locked, knocked around in his mind. He grabbed Gray's shoulder and shook him lightly then rapidly.

"Oh my god stop it Natsu!" Gray yelled while holding his throbbing head. That blondie sure had a grip and this shaking didn't helped too.

"Ah you are awake!" Natsu said with relief washing over his worried expressions.

"Where is this?" Gray asked. He only remembered the blondie dragging him when suddenly everything had blacked out.

"The castle. You were caught by these soldiers and brought here… I guess" Natsu said. He hadn't heard the whole tale of what happened but he remembered the important bits. Gray's hand unconsciously traced the swollen skin where the whip had made contact with his torso. The lash ran from his right shoulder and just reaching below his abdomen on the left side. He winced slightly when the pain registered with full intensity.

"Loki! Natsu, is Loki alright?!" he asked, remembering how the strawberry blonde had protected him.

"I don't know…I just ran towards the castle as soon as I had heard that these pesky soldiers had captured you." Natsu said. He really hadn't gotten a good look of insides when he had sprinted away before. A comfortable silence filled the whole cell. Both boys just sat leaning against the wall when Gray decided to break the silent wave.

"What should we do now?" he asked at which Natsu just shrugged in reply.

"We can only wait for what's about to come." Natsu said while eyeing the magic restricting band on his wrist. An exactly same one was latched on his companion's wrist.

~Back in their House~

Gildarts had just returned back with gloomy atmosphere following him. He flopped down on the now empty couch and leaned against it heavily. He felt like crying. He can't bear to lose two other of his kids after losing his daughter and Lyon, who had shown no sign of waking up or even be alive except for his breathing.

A pair of black obsidian eyes were sluggishly watching the dirty white ceiling above. His whole body felt sore and his vision was blurry. He had woken after a really deep and long slumber so it was pretty obvious. His body felt like lead. Even his fingers were as if they were glued to the white sheets underneath them. Suddenly he heard the shattering of a glass followed by some drops of cool liquid landing on his face.

TBC

**How was it? Please review and tell me if you found any faults or anything! Ciao~!**


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